Sabal Trust CO Makes New Investment in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Sabal Trust CO acquired a new stake in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,392 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $877,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of KLAC. Swedbank AB raised its holdings in shares of KLA by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 550,949 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $426,660,000 after purchasing an additional 2,019 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in KLA by 22.7% during the fourth quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 648 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $443,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV raised its stake in shares of KLA by 52.4% in the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 79,763 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $61,769,000 after acquiring an additional 27,436 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of KLA by 14.1% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 33,215 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $25,722,000 after acquiring an additional 4,112 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greenwich Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in KLA by 260.7% during the 3rd quarter. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,378 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,067,000 after purchasing an additional 996 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Trading Down 1.7 %

KLA stock opened at $724.97 on Wednesday. KLA Co. has a one year low of $609.40 and a one year high of $896.32. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $711.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $715.70. The company has a market capitalization of $96.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.49, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.36 and a quick ratio of 1.63.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The semiconductor company reported $8.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.73 by $0.47. KLA had a return on equity of 108.60% and a net margin of 29.58%. On average, analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 31.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $6.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.94%. KLA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on KLAC shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on KLA from $725.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of KLA from $620.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on KLA from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of KLA from $795.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on shares of KLA from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $831.68.

KLA Profile

KLA Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, manufacture, and marketing of process control, process-enabling, and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and related electronics industries worldwide. It operates through three segments: Semiconductor Process Control; Specialty Semiconductor Process; and PCB and Component Inspection.